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Why is Cardano price down today?

Cardano’s price is down today as traders secure profits at ADA’s overbought levels ahead of a key Federal Reserve rate decision.

Cardano’s (ADA) price is down today, falling 7.75% in the last 24 hours to hit $0.55 on Dec. 13.

Let’s discuss factors that have been driving the Cardano prices lower recently.

From the technical perspective, ADA’s price drop today is part of a correction cycle that started on Oct. 9, when ADA’s price reached its 18-month high of $0.64.

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Why is the crypto market down today?

The crypto market is down today as the impact of large liquidations temporarily shakes the bulls’ confidence.

The crypto market is down today after a sharp correction hit Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH) and altcoin over the weekend.. Bitcoin price dropped by 6.5%, losing nearly a week of gains in 20 minutes on Dec. 10. 

Opening the week, crypto market price action remains tilted to the downside as investors and money managers further digest the factors behind the abrupt correction.

The decline across major cryptocurrencies has led to a rush of liquidations across the derivative market. Bullish traders were caught off guard, leading to a quick spat of long liquidations.

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Crypto payments: PayPal’s stablecoin ripple effect on markets

Earlier this year, PayPal released its own stablecoin. What effect has it had on crypto adoption?

PayPal’s introduction of its native stablecoin, PayPal USD (PYUSD), has sparked heated debates within the crypto industry regarding its possible sway on payments and wider crypto adoption.

While this step seems to be a big jump toward accepting cryptocurrencies in regular finance, some industry observers advise caution.

What is PYUSD?

This initiative aims to bridge the fiat and digital currency realms for consumers, merchants and developers. PayPal CEO Dan Schulman highlighted the need for a stable digital-fiat conduit.

“The shift toward digital currencies requires a stable instrument that is both digitally native and easily connected to fiat currency like the U.S. Our commitment to responsible innovation and compliance, and our track record delivering new experiences to our customers, provides the foundation necessary to contribute to the growth of digital payments through PayPal USD.” 

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Bitcoin sparks liquidations as analyst says BTC price may dip 12% more

Bitcoin loses 3% on the day, with the start of Wall Street trading failing to rescue BTC’s price from the loss of $30,000.

Bitcoin (BTC) headed lower into the April 17 Wall Street open as downside began liquidating longs.

BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView

Bitcoin’s price tipped for a break below $29,000

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView showed BTC/USD wicking to $29,247 on Bitstamp — its lowest in a week.

Gains for Asian stocks failed to rescue the losses on the day, these beginning immediately after the April 16 weekly close.

Traders, many of whom had predicted a retest of $30,000 support, were unsurprised, with many hoping that the event would form a “buy-the-dip” opportunity before Bitcoin moved higher.

Popular trader Crypto Ed said that BTC/USD had “swept the lows,” while others focused on the area around $28,500 as a potential bottom zone.

“BTC bid ladders down to $28.5k want to get filled, but it’s worth noting that the phrase, ‘There are no straight lines in trading’ applies in both directions,” monitoring resource Material Indicators summarized, noting shifts in liquidity on the Binance order book.

BTC/USD order book data (Binance). Source: Material Indicators/Twitter

Material Indicators co-founder Keith Alan eyed the 21-day moving average at $28,860 as short-term support.

Should this fail to hold, he said, it might spark a retest of the 200-week moving average at $25,860 — around 12% lower than the current spot price and 16.5% below the recent local high.

Despite the broad optimism, Bitcoin bulls were feeling the pain at the time of writing, with long liquidations for April 17 totaling nearly $29 million, according to data from Coinglass. Cross-crypto liquidations stood at nearly $67 million.

“Key level here for Bitcoin,” financial commentator Tedtalksmacro added.

“Reclaiming $29.7k is key for new highs… you wanted dip, this is the dip!”

Bitcoin liquidations chart. Source: Coinglass

U.S. dollar seeks “telegraphed” double bottom

United States equities saw a muted reaction at the open, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite Index both up by around 0.1%.

Related: BTC price heading under $30K? 5 things to know in Bitcoin this week

The U.S. dollar made more solid gains, with the U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) above 102 after bouncing from its lowest levels in a year.

U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) 1-day candle chart. Source: TradingView

“Watch $DXY today,” analyst Justin Bennett told Twitter followers. 

“If this plays out, it’ll be the most telegraphed bottom that most failed to see bc they were promised a new bull market.”

U.S. Dollar Index (DXY) annotated chart. Source: Justin Bennett/Twitter

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The views, thoughts and opinions expressed here are the authors’ alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

US needs to regulate stablecoins to keep a strong dollar: Stellar CEO

The United States and the greenback will suffer if stablecoin regulations are not rolled out this year, Stellar Development Foundation’s chief has claimed.

United States financial regulators are tightening their grip on the crypto industry and the U.S. dollar has also been under pressure with countries distancing themselves from dollar hegemony, but the chief of Stellar says stablecoin regulation may solve that.

In an April 11 Bloomberg interview, Denelle Dixon, the CEO and executive director of the Stellar Development Foundation, spoke about the prospects of regulating dollar-pegged digital assets in the United States.

Dixon said she was very optimistic that there would be some form of stablecoin regulation in the U.S. by the end of the year because “they want to set the standard.”

“If we want a strong U.S. dollar globally, a USD stablecoin is the way to see that happen.”

President Joe Biden’s administration has already highlighted the need for a stablecoin regulatory framework, but Dixon said that needs to be pushed through Congress.

“If we don’t do something in the U.S., we’re going to be in this bifurcated world where we have legislation outside the U.S. that’s friendlier to crypto,” Dixon said, adding:

“There will be companies outside the U.S. and there will still be the issue that U.S. consumers will want to leverage this technology.”

Dixon was optimistic about stablecoin regulation “only because we don’t have a choice,” saying the focus should be more on the utility and value to users than on the tech stack.

“Stop talking about the technology and start demonstrating the utility,” she added.

Stellar is a decentralized cross-border payments network powered by the Lumens (XLM) token. It was created as a modified fork from Ripple’s codebase in 2014.

Related: Stablecoins are solution to crypto’s banking problem, exec says

Stablecoins currently represent around 10.5% of the entire crypto market capitalization with $133 billion in circulation. Dixon hinted that it was paramount that stablecoins are regulated and accepted in America as the vast majority of them are pegged to the U.S. dollar.

Market leader Tether (USDT) has issued $14 billion in USDT so far this year, strengthening its market share to 60% with its circulation of $80 billion.

The gains come at the expense of Circle’s USD Coin (USDC) and Binance’s Binance USD (BUSD) stablecoins, both of which have seen considerable declines in supply this year.

Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom

MicroStrategy Bitcoin bet turns green as BTC price climbs to 10-month high

Michael Saylor, the co-founder of the Fortune 500 company, had maintained throughout the bear market that they would continue to invest in Bitcoin as they are confident in its fundamentals.

Business intelligence and Fortune 500 company MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin (BTC) investment has turned green again as BTC broke past the critical resistance of around $29,000 to record a new 10-month high of $30,163.

MicroStrategy started investing in Bitcoin in the second quarter of 2020 when the BTC price was trading around $10,000. Since then, the business intelligence firm had made a series of BTC purchases over the period of two years. The firm has accumulated a total of 140,000 Bitcoin, acquired for nearly $4.17 billion at an average price of $29,803 per BTC.

MicroStrategy co-founder Michael Saylor introduced the Bitcoin strategy as a treasury hedging asset over the United States dollars. Apart from holding BTC personally and on the company’s balance sheet, Saylor also convinced several public companies to accumulate BTC on their balance sheets, including the likes of Tesla, SpaceX and a dozen others.

The Bitcoin bet made by the Fortune 500 company looked lucrative throughout the bull market in 2021. However, a prolonged crypto winter in 2022 fueled by multiple crypto contagions brought upon by the collapse of leading crypto unicorns, crashed BTC price by over 70%. The same Bitcoin bet that looked lucrative in 2021 attracted a lot of flak from crypto critics as MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin investment was at a 50% loss at the peak bear market in 2022.

However, Saylor always maintained that MicroStrategy had full confidence in Bitcoin’s underlying fundamentals and would continue to invest in the top cryptocurrency. In an interview with Cointelegraph, Saylor said that a Bitcoin investment should be judged from a four-year price cycle rather than based on one bear or bull market.

Related: MicroStrategy adds another 1,045 Bitcoin to its growing crypto treasury

After a disastrous 2022, BTC price has shown strength throughout 2023, with the price seeing over a 55% increase in the first quarter of this year. Bitcoin price has closed above the previous month’s high three months in a row, a sign considered to be a bullish market indicator and an indication of another bull run on the horizon.

Bitcoin price history. Source: Bitcoin Archives

Bitcoin has outperformed most traditional stocks and bonds this year and has eclipsed the losses incurred from the crypto contagions caused by FTX and Terra-Luna saga.

Magazine: Crypto winter can take a toll on hodlers’ mental health

Ethereum Shanghai hard fork: ETH price set for more gains versus Bitcoin in April

Ethereum price has gained momentum in April, even against Bitcoin, as the much-anticipated Shanghai hard fork is just days away.

Ether (ETH) dropped by over 7.5% in its Bitcoin (BTC) pair in 2023. But ETH/BTC may wipe its year-to-date losses entirely in April, as Ethereum’s long-awaited Shanghai hard fork is just days away.

The upgrade is set for April 12, enabling Ethereum stakers to withdraw around 1.1 billion ETH in rewards — worth over $2 billion as of April 8. 

ETH price undergoes key technical bounce

Many experts see the hard fork as bullish for Ether in the long term. For instance, the Shanghai buzz has helped Ether outperform Bitcoin in April.

As a result, the ETH/BTC pair has risen by about 4.75% month-to-date to reach 0.066 BTC as of April 8, a nearly 8% rebound since March 20. 

The bounce was largely expected, particularly as ETH/BTC dropped to its historical ascending trendline support. Now, the upside move raises the prospects of an extended bullish retracement toward its descending trendline resistance, marked as a “sell zone” in the chart below.

ETH/BTC three-day price chart. Source: TradingView

The fractal-based outlook puts Ether on target for 0.075 BTC by June, up 10% versus current price levels. Meanwhile, the pair’s upside target for April appears to be its 50-3D exponential moving average (50-3D EMA; the red wave) near 0.069 BTC.

Conversely, a decisive close below the 200-3D EMA (the blue wave) near 0.066 BTC, coinciding support/resistance level near 0.067 BTC, risks delaying or — in the worst case scenario — invalidating the bullish retracement setup.

This bearish argument echoes independent market analyst CrediBULL Crypto who expects strong selling pressure near the 0.067 BTC resistance level that would lead to a 50% drop in 2023. 

ETH/BTC weekly price chart. Source: TradingView/CrediBULL Crypto

Ethereum vs. U.S. dollar outlook

The ETH/USD pair has rallied by more than 50% in 2023, primarily due to similar uptrends elsewhere in the crypto market.

A weakening dollar, lower U.S. Treasury yields and expectations of a Federal Reserve pivot on interest rate hikes have helped cryptocurrencies rise across the board in Q1. These catalysts will likely remain in the spotlight until May’s Federal Open Market Committee meeting.

As a result, Ether could sustain its yearly gains in April, consolidating inside the $1,800–2,000 range until the Fed decision.

Related: 3 key Ethereum price metrics cast doubt on the strength of ETH’s recent rally

Moreover, a decisive breakout at current levels could result in extended gains with a second-quarter ETH price target of over $3,000.

ETH/USD three-day price chart. Source: TradingView

On the other hand, the bears will attempt to pull the price down for a close below $1,800, with the triangle’s lower trendline near $1,600 as its downside target.

This article does not contain investment advice or recommendations. Every investment and trading move involves risk, and readers should conduct their own research when making a decision.

Bitcoin rests at $28K as US jobs data boosts new Fed rate hike bets

Bitcoin price action does not warm to nonfarm payrolls numbers as analysts predict the Fed continuing to hike interest rates in May.

Bitcoin (BTC) showed little interest in moving higher at the April 7 Wall Street open as fresh United States macro data boosted bets on further interest rate hikes.

BTC/USD 1-hour candle chart (Bitstamp). Source: TradingView

Analyst: Fed will keep hiking “until something breaks”

Data from Cointelegraph Markets Pro and TradingView followed BTC/USD as it drifted around $27,900 on Bitstamp.

U.S. nonfarm payrolls figures, the main macro data focus of the week, came in slightly below expectations, indicating unemployment rising more slowly than predicted.

This in turn raised market expectations that the Federal Reserve would persist in raising interest rates to combat inflation — at the expense of crypto and risk asset performance.

The odds of another 25-basis-point rate hike in May topped 70% on the day, according to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool, having previously circled 50%.

“Another strong jobs report. Likely fuels speculation of a 25bps hike in May,” analytics resource Tedtalksmacro reacted on Twitter.

Fed target rate probabilities chart. Source: CME Group

Caleb Franzen, senior market analyst at Cubic Analytics, concluded that this and other recent employment data showed that there were not “any major holes in the labor market data (yet).”

“They’re going to keep going until something breaks,” he continued about Fed policy in part of a follow-up analysis on Twitter.

“So far, the banks are chilling & intervention has worked. Depositors aren’t worried. The labor market is still too resilient and inflation is too high, though it’s decelerating. Disinflation is fully underway, but the Fed is bound by their own handcuffs.”

Related: Crypto winter can take a toll on hodlers’ mental health

Just ahead of the report, monitoring resource Material Indicators uploaded order book data from Binance, which showed strengthening liquidity nearer the spot price.

This, as Cointelegraph reported the day prior, was apt to further “dampen” volatility.

BTC/USD order book data (Binance). Source: Material Indicators/Twitter

Dollar bounces with stocks

Elsewhere, U.S. equities traded up on the day, with the S&P 500 and Nasdaq Composite Index gaining 0.4% and 0.8%, respectively, at the open.

Related: Bitcoin ‘faces headwinds’ as US money supply drops most since 1950s

The U.S. dollar managed an uncharacteristic copycat bounce, meanwhile, heading back above the 102 mark to hit its highest levels in several days.

“$USD strength still showing up fresh higher-high after the NFP report,” analyst James Stanley wrote in part of a Twitter response.

“$DXY reacting with strength to data that isn’t necessarily all that strong.”

U.S. dollar index (DXY) 1-hour candle chart. Source: TradingView

The views, thoughts and opinions expressed here are the authors’ alone and do not necessarily reflect or represent the views and opinions of Cointelegraph.

Tattooing Bitcoin: Advocates wear cryptocurrency on their sleeve

Inked Bitcoin advocates explain privacy, risks and even the pains of getting a Bitcoin tattoo, a growing trend in the community.

Got Bitcoin ink? Many Bitcoin believers do. But what are the risks? What about privacy? And what happens if — one fateful day — Bitcoin crashes and burns to zero?

Cointelegraph spoke with Bitcoin (BTC) advocates to understand why they have permanently etched a Bitcoin logo, motif, equation or slogan onto their skin. They’ve shown permanent solidarity with the decentralized movement, expressing their support for the Bitcoin protocol and the values it represents.

Taihuttu’s Bitcoin B tatto. Source Taihuttu.

Didi Taihuttu, father of the “Bitcoin family,” explained that he inked himself the moment he went “all in on Bitcoin as I thought it was a very important step in my life.” A familiar face among the crypto community, Taihuttu sold all of his family’s possessions and slept in a campsite while the price of Bitcoin was in the four-figure territory with the “B” etched on his arm.

He now travels the world evangelizing Bitcoin, with his forearm on full view:

“Bitcoin changed my way of thinking about the world and decentralizing it.”

Anita Posch, another globetrotting Bitcoin evangelist, has a lightning bolt tattooed on her forearm. In the Human B Bitcoin documentary film, she said she wouldn’t explain that the lightning bolt symbol (a nod to the Lightning Network) on her wrist is Bitcoin-related but added “Bitcoin is my life” in follow-up comments.

TatumTurnUp and Erik Dale have the Bitcoin supply formula on their skin. Source: Tatum

TatumTurnUP (not his real name), the host of the Bitcoin show “Between Two Asics,” explained that he got his tattoo of the BTC supply formula because “It’s what proves scarcity.”

“Monetary scarcity is something we’ve been deprived of until Bitcoin, and the fact I can write down what proves there will only ever be a certain amount of Bitcoin is a pretty big deal.”

The tattoo on his bicep is a common (but unfortunately not strictly accurate) formula for the supply of Bitcoin. He shared a warning with readers: “The bottom of the Sigma might be the most painful thing I ever experienced. Just a forewarning.”

But what about OpSec?

However, isn’t it risky to advertise one’s love of a digital currency on one’s skin? OpSec, or operational security, is a military term the internet has hijacked. Among the crypto community, it refers to the public sharing of identity or defining features. And a Bitcoin tattoo could put a literal target on one’s back. 

Erik Dale, whose tattoos are pictured in the above tweet, founded Norway’s “Northern Lightning” conference series. Dale told Cointelegraph he was aware of the implications. His tattoos are “Equations, no logos or tribal markers, for OpSec reasons.”

“Insiders should realize what they are, but not casual observers.”

Rikki, of content creators and investigators Bitcoin Explorers, joked, “We are not particularly concerned about bad opsec.” He added another Bitcoin tattoo to his collection during a giveaway in Guatemala. 

Bad OpSec can lead to doxing or the public reveal of people’s personal data. That’s why some Bitcoin advocates mask their online identities, using anonymous profiles on social media. Not so for Rikki and his partner Laura; they have their Bitcoin support on full view.

Rikki and Laura’s tattoos. “Stack Sats” means save Bitcoin. Source: Rikki.

Piero Coen, the co-founder of Guatemala-based Osmo Wallet, told Cointelegraph that Bitcoin is a “counterculture movement, and getting a tattoo related to it is a way to show our commitment to this movement.”

“It’s like a badge of honor, showing that we are part of this group of ‘pirates’ who are challenging the traditional financial system and are convinced we’re going to change the world. “

Besides, for Rikki and Laura, much of their lives already permanently exists on camera. Rikki explained:

“We are Bitcoin content creators, and so we chose to give up our privacy years ago. Besides, there aren’t just the slightly paranoid, scheming, pessimistic, terra plat-prone Bitcoiners — there are also us, the good-looking, nice, fun, cool and sex-loving Bitcoiners!”

Laura put it even more succinctly in a recent tweet: 

For Tatum, another content creator and a recognizable face in the Bitcoin space, “Value is teaching people about Bitcoin and networking through it, so there’s a constant battle with opsec.”

“At the bottom of it, I am comfortable with my own security and what I do and do not share, but ‘WHY I love Bitcoin’ is always going to be shared.”

Tatum walks around Bitcoin conferences wearing a bulletproof vest in a jocular nod to operational security in the Bitcoin space.

Tatum interviewing guests in a security vest at Pacific Bitcoin 2022. Source: Tatum

But what if Bitcoin goes to zero? 

Unlike tweets, open letters or company creation, Bitcoin tattoos are tricky to delete. They require commitment. 

So what happens if the currency goes to zero, like many other failed projects from Terra to Celsius? Tatum explained, well, “sucks for me!”

“After I got it, I jokingly said, ‘Now I really hope it doesn’t go to zero or I’ll look like an idiot.’ But in reality, my tattoo is kind of why it never will go to zero. If one person finds value in Bitcoin, there’s only ever going to be so many. So they will have value.”

Billionaire Mike Novogratz’s tattoo of the failed Terra (LUNA) token is an eternal reminder of the headiness and hedonism accompanying crypto bull runs. The tattoo remains on Novogratz’s arm, while LUNA is worth next to nothing, and its creator, Do Kwon, might be facing jail time. Fortunately, Novogratz says he learned from the experience saying investing “requires humility.“

Dale explained he’s prepared to live with the tattoos on his wrists even if Bitcoin does fail. He’s committed until the very end: “If I’m wrong about this, I want to carry that reminder every day. And if not, I can’t imagine a prouder badge to wear for the rest of my days.” 

Related: Novogratz says LUNA tattoo is a constant reminder investing ‘requires humility’

For Taihuttu, it’s important to zoom out and focus on the bigger picture. Bitcoin is a long-term play:

“I believe that people who have tattoos from dollar signs or other fiat have a bigger chance of going to 0.”

He’s right; famous rappers and celebrities, including singer Kesha and actor Lena Dunham, have been inked with dollar sign tattoos. It’s unlikely that they were asked if the dollar would go to zero prior to sitting in the tattoo artist’s chair.

Kesha’s dollar sign tattoo. Source: popstartats.com

On a sober note, Taihuttu explained that regardless of the Bitcoin movement underway, the large tattoo on his forearm represents “an amazing 10 years of my and my family’s life since 2013, the year that I started mining Bitcoin.” And that’s more than enough reason to get Bitcoin ink.

Malaysia enlists China to help end USD dependence for trade

More proposals and currency concepts are emerging as Asia ramps up its efforts to distance itself from U.S. dollar hegemony.

China and Malaysia are considering moving forward on discussions regarding an Asian Monetary Fund, with a distancing from the  U.S. dollar hegemony becoming a greater priority in the region.

On April 4, Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim reportedly said China was open to a proposal to set up an Asian Monetary Fund.

The concept of the Asian-focused fund was floated at a forum on the Chinese island province of Hainan last week, according to Bloomberg.

According to Ibrahim, China’s President Xi Jinping welcomed discussions on a proposed agency to help the two nations — and others in the region — distance themselves from the U.S. dollar and the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Malaysia is among several Asian nations trying to detach itself from dollar dependence. Its central bank is working with the People’s Bank of China to conduct trade in their own currencies.

In late March, China and Brazil agreed to transact solely in their national currencies, cutting out the greenback completely.

An Asian Monetary Fund was initially considered in the 1990s, but Ibrahim thinks that now is the time, stating:

“Now with the strength of the economies in China, Japan, and others, I think we should discuss this — at least consider an Asian Monetary Fund, and, secondly, the use of our respective currencies.”

Also, in late March, a Russian state official spoke of a new currency for the BRICS alliance, as reported by Cointelegraph. It would be another effort to distance itself from the dollar, incorporating the burgeoning economies of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa.

In October 2022, Chinese government researchers proposed a digital currency based on a basket of Asian currencies.

On April 4, South China Morning Post Columnist Alex Lo opined additional reasons for dollar distancing could exist.

Related: ‘Surgical removal’ of crypto will only weaken USD dominance, commentators say

Lo said more countries want to move away from the U.S. dollar, not just for economic reasons, but to “escape the clutches of the gangsterism of U.S. foreign policy, which in the past two decades has weaponized its global dollar dominance with increasing abandon.”

The end of the dollar as the world’s reserve currency could severely impact its value compared to other currencies and crypto assets. It could have a knock-on effect on the $133 billion stablecoin market, which is dominated by dollar-pegged stablecoins.

Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom